


Paintball with the Avengers

by orphan_account



Series: Avengers Short Stories [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Guns, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Paintball, Prosthetics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-13
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-17 18:14:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 22,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16979433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Aurelia decides to try and take on the Avengers in a game of paintball and she ends up head-to-head with the one and only Bucky Barnes.  After, she's invited for dinner.  Stuff ensues.





	1. Chapter 1

A slow wide grin spreads across her face as she watches them make their way into the arena.  They're all talking loudly and jeering at one another, completely ignoring all of the other competitors who are looking at them with wide, mesmerized eyes.

They are the Avengers, after all.  Who wouldn't be completely mesmerized?  She snorts softly at the thought.   _I'm not._   She checks over her gun of choice, making sure it works completely fine.  It's an older sniper rifle that is much better than the newer ones by her account.  It looks a bit odd, but it's one of the best guns she's ever owned.

Her second weapon of choice is a newer pistol.  The range isn't too good, but she'll use it well if the need arises.  However, she doesn't plan on it.  She was a sniper in the military and will always be one.

She started paintball after her second tour got cut short a little after one year in.  This year was supposed to be her last year, but now all she's doing instead of serving her country is trying to get by with her lousy barista/security guard job and participating in paintball competitions with her sniper skills.

She knows the perfect place to hide and the perfect way to take out each of her targets.  She's been doing this for years, having hunted when she was just a child with her father.  If he was still alive he'd probably look down on her choice of how to use her skills, but it doesn't matter now.  He's been gone for years.

She had heard that the Avengers were going to participate in this particular competition.  It isn't widely known and therefore the winners don't get cash prizes, but she just had to see if the intel one of her acquaintance's friends had was correct.  And boy was she not disappointed.   _I'm gonna have to find that guy later...  See what other info he's got._

Her eyes flicker up towards the digital clock.  She pushes off the wall and heads into the arena.  She's one of the only people left in the waiting room, the rest of them a few children who aren't old enough to participate in this particular competition as it's for eighteen or over.

She ducks down and makes sure the metal on her rifle doesn't alert anyone of her position.  There's just a little over five minutes until the competition starts.  The competition itself is simple.  Be the last one standing or stay alive after one hour.

She has no doubt that the Avengers are going to target everyone in the competition to have a proper romp around the surprisingly large course.  Considering the building's an older warehouse, she should have expected it, but what she wasn't expecting was the fact that they've got so many props that actually make the whole place look exactly like a forest.  They've got real trees, too.

She mentally snorts as she hears a few people laughing and she even sees a few standing around doing nothing.   _Noobs._   She makes sure she's crouched as low as possible as she sprints up one of the two hilly areas.  It's got a large tree at the top, but since it's so hard to get to, she doubts that anyone's got there.

She sighs in relief as she inspects the tree and the whole hill just to make sure that no one's hiding and waiting to pick her off once the buzzer rings.  Everyone was debriefed thirty minutes before the competition started.  They closed the gates thirty minutes beforehand so anyone who didn't hear the rules can't play.

The rules are easy.  No lethal weapons.  No aiming at the groin or head area.  You must shout  _hit_  if you get hit, if not, you're banned for life.  And you must have a different color than everyone else.

There are about fifty people in the course, so there's a wide range of colors and some are different shades.  The color she got was black, just like all of her gear.  She heard that the Avengers got red, blue, gold, purple, crimson, and silver.   _That soldier must have silver,_  she mentally snorts, knowing that he's got a silver arm.  Her hand momentarily flickers down to her right leg where her own prosthetic is, the reason she was discharged.

It's one of those newer fancy 3D printed ones.  She had made it in black and she thinks it looks nice with the pale color of her skin.  Majority of it looks like wires so you can see straight through it.  She has four different ones as it costed no less than two-hundred for all of them.  This one is her favorite, though.  She tends to wear shorts to show it off as she's not embarrassed by her injury.

She shakes her head and narrows her eyes.  She's got a mask covering the majority of her face, as she usually does during her paintball competitions, and she knows that a few people in the crowd recognized her.

She's built up quite the reputation within the last two and a half years and she's even received a nickname.  The Shadow.   _So original,_  she mentally snorts, taking position at the top of the tree.  _Just because I always wear black and no one knows my identity and no one sees me after a match, that doesn't mean I'm a shadow._   She thinks for a few moments.   _Oh, wait._

She whistles lowly at the view.  She can see nearly all of the course and it's quite impressive.  The center is practically a maze and one wrong turn will lead you to a dead end where all of the snipers can easily pick you off.  Hell, she can see about thirteen people who are easy pickings, but that's not what she's going for.  She can't draw attention to her position.

She's planning on taking out the big guns.  She'll wait until the Avengers take out everyone and make them think that they're the only ones left and then that's when she'll strike.  Like a predator in the night.  Silent but deadly.   _You're not killing anyone, Aura.  You're just... killing their pride._   She gives herself a mental nod.   _Yes.  Kill their pride._

She flattens herself against the tree and hugs her rifle to her chest as the buzzer rings.  Within the first ten seconds, there's about ten _Hit!_ 's.  She sits on the branch and watches as all of the newbies get picked off and shout in frustration as they walk back to the main doors, waving their white flag in the air.

Her own one is tucked into her back pocket, but she doesn't intend on using it.  She intends to win.  She _may_ or _may not_ be very competitive.   _Eh,_  she thinks to herself, mentally shrugging her shoulders.   _I'm not hurting anyone._

She lays down on the branch as she hears the loud footsteps of a few people coming towards her.  "I heard she came over here!" she hears a masculine voice shout.  It's a bit higher than she expected and she has a feeling that it may be a kid who decided to sneak into the competition.  It happens.

She looks through her scope and nearly snorts at what she sees.  It's a group of three boys dressed in camo.  The leader is running up the hill to the very left of her towards an outpost as fast as he can while chattering loudly, and she's surprised that he hasn't got picked off yet.  She rolls her eyes.   _Well, now he is._

She narrows her eyes as the guy looks away from his friends and she fires off two shots.  His two friends groan in sync as they are forced to take a step backward from the shot.  They both shout that they're hit and the leader of the group who was most likely talking about her immediately sprints away, knowing that he's next.  She rolls her eyes and readies for the shot before freezing in place as a paintball hits the kid.

She squints her eyes to catch the color in the dim light and she hisses under her breath.  "Shit!" she mutters, dropping out of the tree as fast as possible and ducking for cover as a few paintballs fly towards her.  "Shit.  Shit.   _Shit!_ "   _I can't let him get me!_

She ducks down as she runs behind the outpost tower.  Paintballs are no longer flying towards her, but she knows that only means that either he's running after her or he's changing position for a better shot.   _Most likely the latter,_  she absentmindedly thinks as she slides down the other side of the hill and rolls behind one of the walls.  _That soldier's known for waiting for his target to do all the work and get into the perfect position where he can get them._

Good thing she knows a thing or two about being a sniper.  Instead of heading towards one of the other ideal sniping positions, like the other hill, the outpost towers, or the other trees, she heads towards the far wall.

She had scoped out the area earlier and had learned of a little secret hidden on the wall.  It's a little foothold that makes it so anyone with good enough jumping skill can jump onto a nearby house prop.  It's unpredictable and it's also a good enough position to see some of the arena.

She pins herself to a wall and grabs her rifle as she spots a little spark in the distance.  She knows it's not the soldier as he's smart enough not to be seen, but she knows it must be one of the Avengers as everyone else has been hit.

She lowers herself onto the ground, happy that she's on the higher section of the map and squints into her scope.  She grins behind her mask as her target comes into view, running from someone.

She pulls the target and her grin broadens as her target let's out a groan.  "Oh, c'mon!" Stark groans out, looking at his chest where she hit him.  "Wait, who's color is this?"  Not a second later Black Widow comes into view and before the famous assassin can react, she's hit, too.

"Shit!" the read-head curses as she sprints away from her, knowing that the assassin's already heading towards her previous position.  She also has an idea that the other assassin, Hawkeye, may be searching for her too since she knows that the two are in cahoots.

Instead of taking the expected route of escape, she doubles back on her original position and heads towards the two hit targets.  She nearly laughs as she hears them curse and shout out that they're hit.

She makes sure to stay away from where they're headed, but she mentally checks the two of them off her list.   _Two down, four to go.  Oh, this'll be fun,_ she thinks as she spots a blonde head of hair in the distance.

She hears a round fire off and the familiar voice of the Falcon yell out.   _Three down, three to go.  All I've got left is the Captain, Hawkeye, and that soldier._   She changes her route as she heads towards her original destination.  It doesn't take her long to reach the far wall and she easily locates the foothold hidden behind part of a bush.

She narrows her eyes at it and arranges herself so her leg doesn't get caught in the branches.  It's a bit of a struggle for her to pull herself up as her foot gets caught, but she manages to push off the wall and spins around to grab onto the ledge of the roof.   _This looked easier in the video,_  she mentally grumbles to herself, adjusting her grip so she can easily throw herself onto the roof.

A shot fires in the distance and she instinctually flattens herself to the roof.  "Hit!" the Captain yells out.  _Damn,_  she thinks to herself, arranging her rifle so she can see over the edge of the roof and can shoot if she needs to.   _I wanted to get him.  Oh, well,_  she sighs.   _I'll get the next one._   _I'll save the soldier for last since he stole my kill._

Her eyes flicker over to the large digital clock in the distance and her eyes widen.   _How the hell are there only twenty minutes left!?_   She shakes her head and squints her eyes as she looks over the vast expanse of the clear arena.  It only takes her about five minutes, but she spots Hawkeye.

As swiftly as possible, she takes aim and her paintball soars through the air.  She can tell he's surprised by the way he falters in the tree, but a few seconds later she hears him call out that he's hit.

She ducks down immediately as she sees a flicker of metal in the distance.   _He was waiting for me to shoot,_  she thinks in annoyance as s paintball hits the roof right next to her hand.  She yelps and rolls away from the edge.  _Damn, that soldier is smart.  Letting me get the shot so he can see exactly where I am._

 _I bet he thought he was gonna get me, too,_  she thinks in amusement, slinging her rifle over her shoulder and grabbing the back edge of the house roof so she can get down.  If she had a real leg she would just jump off, but her prosthetic's got limits.   _At least now I know where he's at._

She sprints off as fast as possible towards his location.  He was only a bit to the left of where Hawkeye was situated and she's amused that the assassin hadn't spotted the soldier sooner.

She crawls up a tree that was out of his view and she takes aim with her rifle.  She swivels to her right as she spots his arm gleam in the distance as he runs the edge of a building.  She lets two paintballs fly, but she curses as they land a little behind him.   _I need to factor in his speed.  He's much faster than I thought._

Two more paintballs fly and while they get closer to him, they don't hit him.  He disappears behind a dummy house and she drops out of the tree, making a path between various dummy houses and walls as she makes her way through the center.  It's the only area where he'd have trouble spotting her.

She throws herself to the ground as a paintball lands on the wall just ahead of her.   _Shit!  He's closer than I thought._   She looks down at her rifle but doesn't bother with it as she realizes that she's out of paintballs for it, having only been allowed a few for the rifle she was using.  She reluctantly grabs her pistol out her thigh holster and she pushes herself to her feet, her leg sore from her rough landing.

She growls softly to herself as she realizes that she's only got two clips that hold ten paintballs each.  She'd usually bring more, but she hadn't expected emptying clips without hitting a target.

"Damn, soldier," she grumbles as she looks around her.  She nearly freezes as she realizes that he's no longer using his rifle.   _He must have run out,_ she thinks.  But the thought doesn't console her as she realizes that she's now literally stuck in a maze with a trained super assassin.  " _Shit_."

She sprints as fast as possible to the area near the doors as it doesn't hold a lot of covers.  While that means that she may be a bit defenseless, it also means that he won't be able to hide as he prefers to do.

She throws herself to the side again as a few more paintballs fly near her.  She can practically hear him cussing her out for avoiding him.  Ahead of her, she can see the open area where everyone can look over the arena.  She can see the rest of the Avengers group overhead and a lot of them are either glaring at her for shooting them or they're highly amused.

She'd be amused, too, if she saw what was going on.  One small girl with half a leg versus a super-soldier who's killed over two-dozen people and was also a famous sniper in World War II.  Yeah, she doesn't blame them.

She yelps as a paintball flies past her, her eyes widening as she throws herself against the wall.   _Don't get distracted!_  she hisses at herself.  She closes her eyes and readies her pistol as she spins around and slowly leans past the wall.

She blindly fires two shots and she hears him cuss out in what she assumes to be Russian.  She grins from behind her mask but throws herself back against the wall as he shoots towards her again.

"Just give up!" she hears a voice from above yell.  She looks upwards and glares at the Falcon.  "He's got you pinned!"  She narrows her eyes at him and fires a paintball towards him, making him yelp as it hits his shoulder.   _Worth it,_  she thinks as she tucks the empty clip into her utility belt.

She takes a deep breath and moves before she can think too much about it.  She spins around and fires off shots as she swiftly sprints to the wall on the other side of the opening.  _Shit_ _!  How many paintballs did I just shoot?_   She mentally growls as he fires off a few more shots as she tries to peek around the wall.

 _He must be really low, now,_  she thinks to herself, going over the options in her head.   _Fuck it_.  She runs out from behind the wall and levels her pistol to his chest.  She stops as he does the same and she snorts as she realizes what they're doing.

"Are we seriously doing this?" she mutters, feeling her mask move as she speaks.  His eyes are narrowed at her and she's amused to see him in full Winter Soldier gear.  Including the mask.  He's lacking the goggles, though.

"C'mon, doll," he says, taking off his mask.  She doesn't waver as she narrows her eyes at him and doesn't remove her mask.  "I've got you cornered.  Surrender."  She tilts her head to the side as if thinking about it.

"How about... no."  He narrows his eyes at her and at the same exact time, they pull the trigger.  She blinks as the buzzer rings but no paintball leaves her gun or hits her.  She looks down at it and unloads the magazine.  She looks at it and snorts softly as she realizes that she had no paintballs left.  She looks up at him to see him looking at an empty clip, too.

They look at each other for a few minutes before she starts giggling softly, her posture going from soldier to teenage girl within a second.  Her giggles almost immediately turn into laughter as she hears the rest of the Avengers team start to laugh, too.

She grabs her stomach as he laughs, too, shaking his head all the while and putting his gun into a holster.  She does the same, and shifts her rifle around on her back, watching as he approaches her.  He holds his hand out and she immediately grasps it in her own, pulling down her cloth mask and smiling up at him.

She tilts her head to the side and flashes her teeth at him.  "Nice game," he says.  "You make an amazing opponent."  She giggles softly in her remaining amusement and nods her head in acknowledgment.

"You're not too bad yourself, soldier."  She takes her hand away from him just as the rest of the Avengers team join them on the main floor.  Apparently, nearly everyone else left right after they got picked off, so there were only a few people to see the end of the game.

She steps to the side and salutes to the Captain.  "Captain Rogers," she says, tilting her head to the side at the silver paint on his chest.  "I see that Sergeant Barnes didn't just pick you off just because you're friends."

The Captain nods his head and she relaxes her position as he nods his head.  "Army?" he asks needlessly.

She gives a sharp nod.  "Served five and a half years as a sniper before I got discharged," she says, gesturing towards her mesh-looking prosthetic.  He gives her a sympathetic smile and nods at her.  "Anyways, good game.  Maybe I'll see you at the next tournament, Sarge," she says, looking towards the soldier before beginning to walk away as she starts to lift her mask over her face.

"Wait!" she hears the Falcon say loudly.  She lowers her mask and looks back at him.  "Why don't you join us?  We were just going to head out to eat before going back to the compound.  You took out three of us, that deserves a reward."

She turns back to them fully and crosses her arms as she juts her hip out.  "I would have taken out four of you if it wasn't for him."  She gives a side glance to Barnes who rolls his eyes at her.  "Also, thanks for taking my kill back there."

He raises an eyebrow at her as he leans on his rifle.  "The guy was bothering you.  I did ya' a favor.  Besides, you got his pals."  She narrows her eyes at him but rolls them in an amused manner as a puff of air leaves her nose.

"That's beside the point, Sergeant, and you know it."  He waves his hand around and she looks over at the Falcon who looks equal parts amused and confused.  "I've got nothin' else to do.  Why not?"

He grins and looks from her to the soldier.  "Good.  You got a ride?  If not, Buck's got an extra helmet."  She snorts softly in amusement at his _subtle_ hint and shakes her head.

"Of _course_  you've got a motorcycle," she mutters under her breath at him.  "I've got a bike of my own, so I don't need a ride.  I'll follow you out, though."  At that, she puts her mask back over her mouth and heads out the door, disregarding the confused and amused mutters behind her.

"She's like a girl version of you, man!"


	2. Chapter 2

She cuts the engine to her bike, sliding off of it as she tucks her key into her pocket.  She pulls off her helmet and runs her fingers through her thick brown hair that now sits somewhat puffy-like against her head.  She puts the helmet into her large storage compartment and pulls off her cloth mask and her gloves, stuffing them in there as well as she locks it.

She turns around and walks towards the doors to the restaurant as quickly as possible, flashing a smile at Barnes as he waits by the door for her.  They're the first ones there and she's surprised that the Captain didn't ride his own bike to the competition as she's heard that he has one.

"You want to grab a table while I wait for everyone?" she murmurs as she leans against the brick wall.  She looks at him out of the corner of her eye and he gives a small nod, pushing off the wall and walking into the restaurant.

It's one of the pricier but popular ones and she's happy that they offered to pay for her as she's a bit tight on money at the moment.  While she does receive monthly checks for her disability compensation, it's not nearly enough for her to do anything like eat out as she's saving up for technical school.

Before even joining the military, she was good with machines and guns.  Being the only daughter in a family of seven with a father who absolutely  _loved_ machines and cars and was always working on them, it's no wonder she came to love them as well.  Her mother always told her that she was a Daddy's girl and she has no doubt about that.  Even when he's six feet under, she's still a Daddy's girl.

She turns to the car that parks a few spots away from her.  It's an orange sports car and very modern, though it's not too much of an interest for her.  She's more interested in the classics from the forties and fifties.

She pushes off the wall and walks forward to meet the rest of the Avengers team, a small smile on her face.  Her pistol is still strapped to her thigh, but it's covered up by her jacket that is wrapped around her waist.  She doesn't really worry about it, though, as it's not a real gun and the magazine only holds a few paintballs.

"Where's Frosty?" Stark asks, waiting for everyone else to get out of the car.  She tilts her head to the side and lifts an eyebrow in an amused manner.

"He means Bucky," the Falcon states, crawling out of the back of the car.  "This car really isn't meant for five people."  He rolls his shoulders a bit as she looks him over with a small smirk, noticing how he specifically shrugged his left shoulder that she hit earlier.

"He went inside to get a table," she says, shooting a smile to the Captain who opens the door for her.  "Thanks, Captain."

She scans the place on instinct, noticing the two exits near the bathrooms and the entrance to the kitchen.  One of the walls are windows that have blinds and it can be a problem if the place is attacked.

She mentally shakes her head, shrugging off the thought.   _You're not gonna be attacked._   She ducks her head sheepishly as she sees the two previous soldier's eyes on her and shrugs.  "Force of habit," she mutters, seeing their understanding gazes.

It takes her barely a second to see Barnes, and she leads the way to him, taking a seat with her back against the wall.  It's not her preferred place to sit as Barnes took up the seat in the corner, but it's better than nothing.

She drums her fingers on the table in boredom, trying to keep herself from looking everyone over and assessing them for weaknesses.  She looks over at Barnes and raises an eyebrow, feeling his eyes on her.  He ducks his head down at getting caught but doesn't stop staring at her.

"So," Falcon drawls out, setting his menu down.  "What's your name?"  She raises an eyebrow at him and he snorts.  "C'mon, you should already know ours, it'd be nice to know yours."  A small smirk tilts her lips upwards and she tilts her head to the side and looks him over.

"Oh, I'm sorry.  I don't think I've heard of you," she says in an innocent voice.  Her smirk turns into a grin at his baffled and hurt look, ignoring the urge to join in as everyone laughs at him.  "I'm joking, but I'd rather you guys introduce yourselves so I don't have to keep calling you by your superhero names."  She knows that she didn't provide her name like he asked, but she can't bring herself to care.

She doesn't react to his hurt look and raises an eyebrow at him.  He huffs and rolls his eyes.  "Sam Wilson," he says, slumping back in his chair, completely at ease.  It kinda baffles her how at ease he is with his back to the rest of the restaurant, though she supposes that it comes with practice and he's most likely keeping tabs on everything that's happening behind him, anyway.

She nods at him and tilts her head at the only other female at the table.  She has a smirk curling her red lips and she has her arms crossed over her chest.  "I'm Natasha.  Nice shot, by the way.  I didn't expect it."  She grins at the red head's praise and shrugs her shoulders, turning to the other assassin.

He gives her a warm mischievous smile, making her narrow her eyes at him slightly.  "I'm Clint," he says, providing a hand for her to shake.  She eyes it warily and doesn't take it, making him slip off a small devise as he chuckles.  At her narrowed eyes, he shrugs.  "Worth a shot."

She rolls her eyes and turns to Stark.  He's grinning at her.  "I like you," he says, making her blink in confusion at him.  "Call me Tony.  And next time, I'll be the one to take you out."  She tilts an eyebrow and flashes her teeth at him in a challenging predatory grin, turning towards the Captain who is sitting next to her.   _I don't care if he tells me to call him Steve.  He's still the Captain in my mind._

"Steve Rogers," he says, providing his hand.  She doesn't think twice to grip it with hers and she smiles as she notices that he isn't using any of his strength.   _He's probably afraid that he's gonna break me,_  she mentally snorts, knowing that he's old-fashioned like that.

She turns to the soldier last, giving him a cheeky grin.  She's surprised when he provides his metal hand for her to shake, but she doesn't hesitate to grab it, letting him know that she's not afraid of it or him.  "Bucky," he says, a smile warming his lips.  "And you are?"

She lets go of his hand, huffing out an amused breath.  "Aurelia, but you can call me Aura."  She eyes up the waitress who's swaying her hips too much to be normal and who has the first three buttons of her top left undone, mentally rolling her eyes in annoyance.  She does a quick overview of the menu, wandering what to get.

"I've heard that they've got amazing pizza at this place," Bucky says right next to her ear.  She turns her head to the side and her gaze flickers down to his menu that's open to the pizza section.  "I'm thinkin' of getting the meat-lovers, what about you?"

Her lips quirk up as the waitress asks everyone what they want to order and she hums, looking at one of the pictures.  "I'm goin' old school," she mutters, pointing towards the picture of a slice of cheesy pepperoni pizza.  "Pepperoni."

He flashes a smile and turns towards the waitress.  She's surprised when his eyes don't roam over her body as she heard that he was quite the lady's man back in the thirties and forties.  "Can we have a small pizza?" he asks.  "Half meat-lovers and half pepperoni?"  He turns towards her as he folds up his menu.

"I hope you don't mind," he says sheepishly and her quirked eyebrow.  "It's cheaper that way and we get more pizza for it."  She just shrugs her shoulders and grins at him, flattered that he ordered for her.  She was honestly a little anxious about speaking to the waitress as she suffers from a bit of social anxiety.

"That's fine," she says, handing him her menu as he's right next to the holder.  "I have social anxiety so you did me a solid."  He flashes her a smile that makes her want to blush, but she ignores it.

"So, Aura," Sam cuts in, drawing her attention away from the soldier.  "How long have you been doing paintball?"  He's giving her this look that makes her think that he thinks that something's going on between her and the soldier, but she brushes it off.

"I've been doing it for a little over two years," she hums, absentmindedly rubbing her thigh where the silicon socket from her prosthetic is digging into it.  "My friend actually kinda forced me to do it."  She chuckles and shakes her head in amusement, getting a few curious looks from the team.  "He didn't know that I was in the army and that I was a sniper, so he was really confused when I got a panic attack in the middle of the game after shooting someone."

She grins despite the fact that her friend gave her a panic attack, ignoring the confused and concerned looks that a few of the team are giving her.  "It didn't take long to get over it as he was actually going to school to be a therapist, so he kinda knew what to do.  He kinda connected the dots when I preceded to take out the competition within the next five minutes on my own.  That man does _not_  know how to handle a gun."

A few people at the table chuckle, shaking their head in what seems to be agreement.  Apparently, they know the feeling of either shocking people or dealing with people who have no clue as to how to use a gun.

"Do you have a code-name?" Tony asks, cocking an eyebrow as he takes a bite of a bread stick.  "With skills like yours and with your getup, you've got to have a code-name."  She snorts softly and nods her head in amusement.

"I do, actually.  It wasn't my choice though," she says, rolling her eyes.  "It's pretty easy to guess.  Think about it.  I wear all black clothing, a mask so no one knows my identity, and I always disappear after matches..."  She grins up at them.

"Lemme guess," Sam says, leaning back in his chair and resting his one arm over the back of it.  "The Shadow?"  She laughs and nods her head, having to bite her hand in order to stop herself from laughing any louder at his completely baffled and shocked look.  Apparently, he wasn't expecting to be correct.

"Wait, seriously?" Natasha asks, giving her an incredulous look.  "How unoriginal."  She snorts softly as she tries to contain her laughs, nodding in agreement.

"Oh, trust me," she says, rolling her eyes as her amusement subsides.  "I know."  She shrugs.  "It doesn't help that I actually went with it.  I don't really feel like having anyone know who I am.  I like to keep my identity a secret."

"Why?" Clint asks, making her look at him in confusion.  He elaborates.  "Why keep your skills hidden behind a mask?  It's just paintball."  Her smile turns a bit dark as she shakes her head at his naivety.

"With my skills, I participate in big matches," she explains.  "The bigger the match, the larger the prizes.  I've made a few thousand dollars off of those matches on my own and some of the teams get angry that just one person receives the cash.  There are a lot of cases where teams have jumped a few players who win prizes, and I honestly don't feel like being taken advantage of.  I know how to defend myself, but my leg's a liability."

"People actually get hurt for that?" Steve asks with a frown.  She nods her head and his frown deepens.  "Has anyone ever tried to attack you?"  She shrugs a nod.

"They've never been able to get me out of the field," she says, ignoring their concerned gazes.  "I always change my clothes and cover up my leg afterwards so no one knows who I am.  But in the matches where there are large expanses of covered areas where no one can see me if I get attacked?  Numerous times at the start."

Her grin turns predatory.  "Good thing I know how to take care of myself.  There's also the fact that they underestimate me for missing half a leg, so it's easy to either knock them out or get someone to realize what's goin' on.  It doesn't happen much since I can usually see them before they get to me, but it happens and they go to jail for it."  She shrugs off their concerned glances and smiles as her and Buck's pizza is placed in front of them.

She listens as they talk to each other, shifting around in her chair as the silicon keeps biting into her leg.  She rubs her thigh a bit and tries to re-position her leg, cussing under her breath as her foot knocks into the table and causes the stump of her leg to ache further.

"You okay there?" Bucky asks her, eyeing her with a small amused frown.  She huffs a breath and lifts herself up, moving her hand to grip his shoulder as she stumbles, her foot getting caught.  She releases him and sits down again, sighing in relief as the pressure in her leg lessens.

"Sorry," she says, glancing at him with a sheepish smile.  "My leg's sore and I can't wait to get home so I can take this prosthetic off."  She glares down at the silicon peaking through her shorts.   _Damn leg._

"I've been meaning to ask you about that," Tony says, setting down his own piece of pizza.  Apparently, the Avengers  _really_  like pizza since only Natasha and Steve didn't get it.  "What's it made out of?"  A few people give him a look for asking, but she doesn't mind it.  She's proud of it.

"Majority of it is made of steel," she says, positioning herself so she can sit up straight without the socket digging into her leg again.  "I used my friend's old 3D printer to print it.  I had to get the silicon socket and a few other parts of it from a store, though.  I designed it and put it together myself with some input from a doctor for what parts needed to be fortified to support my weight."

"From the look, I got of it, it's really good," Tony says, setting down his pizza slice.  "You planning on working with that type of stuff in the future?"  She raises her eyebrows, wondering why _the Tony Stark_  is interested in her prosthetic and her plans with it.

She shakes her head.  "I'm actually saving up to go to tech school.  I wanna get a degree in mechanics among some other things.  I like working with machines, specifically cars and some other things.  Not really sure what I'm going to do afterward, though?"  She shrugs her shoulders, taking another bite of her pizza.

He nods and leans back with a thoughtful look on his face.  She finishes her slice of pizza, ignoring the curious gazes on her.  She wipes her mouth and sighs, looking over at Sam.   _Damn, this man has a lot of questions._   "Just ask."  She holds in a smirk at his sheepish expression.

"How'd that happen?" he asks, nodding downwards towards the general direction of her prosthetic.  "You don't have to answer.  I'm just curious."  She sips some of her water and shrugs her shoulders.  She doesn't mind sharing about how she got half of her leg amputated.  She's proud of it.

"I blew myself up."  At his, and everyone else's disbelieving gazes, she elaborates.  "A mission went wrong and we got cornered.  I told my squadron to get out of there and I threw a grenade once they were out of the blast radius.

"I managed to get far enough away that I didn't get the brunt of the blast, but some shrapnel caught me in the leg."  She tilts her head to the side.  "It severed only about a little over half of it, and the medics said that they could have saved it but that I'd have a lot of trouble walking, much more trouble than I have now, so I told them to just cut it off."

She thinks for a few moments.  "Thinking about it now, it probably wasn't the best idea at the time, but I honestly did not feel like struggling for about a year until I could walk somewhat and that would have been with a cane.  I still ended up using a cane at first, but at least now I can walk.  The pain I have now is worth the decision to just cut it off."

Sam whistles lowly.  "Damn, girl.  You're brave."  She just shrugs, grinning shamelessly.


	3. Chapter 3

She mutters under her breath and repositions herself for the seventh time.  The  _seventh_.  The silicon from her socket is still digging into her thigh and it's starting to get a little itchy.  Not to mention the fact that her leg was hurting from throwing herself to the ground earlier when Bucky shot at her in the arena.  She glares at the offending limb, or partial limb, and curses it to the hottest pits of hell.

"You have a colorful vocabulary," Bucky mutters with light amused eyes, taking a bite out of his fifth piece of pizza.  They've been here for around two hours and it's safe to say that she's a little more than irritated at her leg.

She looks up at him, her face flushing in embarrassment at getting caught.  She smiles sheepishly, noticing everyone's eyes on her.  "I usually don't cuss out loud," she says, playing with a napkin to try and ignore the eyes on her.  "My leg's just being  _extra_  annoying today."  She scowls down at it again, nearly cursing aloud as it continues to bite into her thigh.

"Oh, I wonder who's fault that is?" Bucky hums, biting into his piece of pizza again.  She scowls at him, borderline glaring at his smart-ass comment.

"Yours."  She grins as he nearly chokes on his pizza and gulps down half of his water.  At his incredulous look, she elaborates.  "If you hadn't have shot at me earlier, I wouldn't have had to throw myself to the ground about five times to not get hit.  So, it's your fault."  She crosses her arms over her chest and juts her chin forward, ignoring the choked laughter from Sam and Tony.

Bucky's mouth falls open and he looks absolutely adorable.  She knew that  _James Buchanan Barnes_  was handsome.  Hot even.  But she honestly didn't understand why so many people fell for his charm back in the forties.  Now, looking at his reaction to her ridiculous statement, she can understand what girls saw in Bucky Barnes.  He's _absolutely_  charming, adorable, and the epitome of a gentleman.

"You're the one who decided to go toe to toe with the Avengers," he points out, getting over his shock.  "You knew the risks, but still decided to do it.  So, therefore, it's  _your_  fault.  You're also the one who decided to chop your leg off  _after_  blowing yourself up, doll."  She scowls at him and crosses her arms over her chest, huffing out a breath, ignoring the warmth that spreads through her at the old endearing term.

She grumbles and sits back in her chair, pouting.  She's usually not this open and goofy with people she just met, but she feels comfortable around the Avengers like she's known them for years.  She tilts her head to the side as she gets a text:

_Unknown Number:  Someone's having a little fun with Earth's Mightiest Heroes._

She frowns as she straightens in her chair, eyes sweeping over the interior of the restaurant.  It barely takes her two seconds to spot the figure of her ex-boyfriend sitting in the far corner by the window, staring straight at her.  She hesitantly sends a text, aware that all of the Avengers are looking at her from her sudden change in demeanor.  She sends him a text, scowling down at her phone in annoyance.

 _You:  What are you doing here, Daniel?_   She ignores the stares of the group and continues staring at her phone, waiting for her ex to text back.  How he got her number, she has no idea.

 _Unknown Number:  I'm keeping an eye on what's mine.  You're not allowed to hang out with them anymore._   She snorts at the text and rolls her eyes, swiftly typing a retort.

 _You:  The hell I am.  I'm not your little puppet anymore.  Leave me the fuck alone._   She glances over at him and a small smirk lifts on her lips as she sees his grip on his phone tighten.  She'd love to go over to him and sock him in the jaw for even daring to contact her, but she doesn't have a reason.  She never thought to file a restraining order on him as they broke up years ago.   _I regret that so much right now._

"Everything okay?" the Captain's voice cuts through her thoughts, startling her.  Her eyes snap upwards and she can notice half of the table staring at her and half of the table sending hidden glances towards the man hiding in the corner.  "Is that guy bothering you?"

Her lip quirks up in amusement, finding his worrying cute and nice.  She shakes her head.  "Just an ex.  Nothing that I can't handle."  She sends a little finger wave towards her ex, smiling as he glares at her.

 _Unknown Number:  I'll see you soon, Relia._   Her smile drops as she reads the name, her back going straight.  Her father's nickname for her was Relia, and despite him being gone for nine years, it still strikes a pain in her heart.

Without thinking of what she's doing, she stands from her spot on the table, her fingers itching to grab the gun strapped to her thigh.  While it may not be a real gun with real bullets, the paintballs will still hurt.  She had reloaded it before leaving the paintball match.  Before she can take a step away from the table, a cold and hard hand wraps itself around her wrist.

She narrows her eyes at Bucky, feeling her leg begin to tremble from the ache in it.  He's staring into her eyes so intensely that she can't move.  She blinks slowly at him, a frown pulling at her lips.  "What?" she asks him, shrugging her hand from his grip.

"What did he say to you?"  She blinks at the sharp tone, but more so at the worry and concern she can see and hear coming from him.  She sighs and sits down, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at her ex, borderline snarling as he stands from his table and begins to walk away, a cheeky smirk on his lips.

"It was a small threat that he's gonna 'see me soon' and he called me 'Relia.'"  She looks down and takes a deep breath, closing her eyes and pinching her nose.  _Damn him.  Making me want to shoot him in the middle of dinner with the fuckin' Avengers._

"What's wrong with 'Relia'?" Clint asks, his voice curious.  She purses her lips and takes out her phone, flipping through a few photos until she comes upon one that makes her chest ache.  It's a family picture from when she was sixteen, right before her father died.

"It was my dad's nickname for me," she says softly, taking out her phone and showing it to the group.  The photo has her parents, herself, and her four brothers in front of her dad's mechanic shop.  Her dad has one arm around her mom's waist, and his other arm held over her shoulder.

Her four brothers are around them, the two younger ones in front of her and her father, and her two older ones standing beside her mother, all of them with smiles on their faces.  She smiles at the picture, noticing how her father's looking at her mom with heart-shaped eyes.

"I'm sorry," Steve says softly, leaning back so the other side of the table can see the image clearly.  She's not surprised that he picked up that her dad's no longer here.  He  _is_  Captain America, after all.

She shakes her head.  "It's been nine years.  The name is the only thing that really gets to me anymore," she says, turning off her phone and putting in back in her pocket.  "Daniel's just a dick that likes to try and manipulate me."  She huffs an annoyed breath.  "It's been four years and the last time I saw him while I was home, I put his sorry ass in the hospital."  She's not counting the time when he tried to visit her in the hospital when she got her leg amputated as she was high on pain meds.

"Why'd you put him in the hospital?" Natasha asks her, amusement shining in her eyes.  She can tell that the woman already knows why.  She grins at that, happy to talk about why she hurt the man.

"It was when I got home after my first tour," she begins to explain, hopping up in her seat in amusement.  "At the time I didn't really see him as  _too_  abusive, so we were still together.  Anyway, he tried to have sex with me and when he tried despite me refusing, I may have or may have not have kneed him in the balls.  With my foot.  While my steel-toed boots were on."

She matches Natasha's amused smirk, grinning as a few of the men wince and go to cover their balls despite the fact that the man literally tried to rape her.  "It's safe to say that that was my 'Goodbye, I'm breaking up with you,' note."

"Why do you have your pistol strapped to your thigh?" Bucky says, easily changing the conversation.  She nearly smiles at the amusement shining in his ice colored eyes.  She shrugs her shoulders at the question.

"It makes me look cool," she says, shifting around as her leg begins to ache again.  "There's also the fact that I can intimidate people with it.  I may have shot Daniel with it if you hadn't have stopped me."  She grins sheepishly at him.

"Why not a real gun?" Tony asks.  "I know you can handle a gun.  That's clear enough with the army thing and all, and also your skills a few hours ago.  So, why don't you have an actual gun on you?"

Again, she shrugs her shoulders.  "It's easier to make people think you have a real firearm without the danger of it being real.  That's not to say that I don't have a real gun.  I've got three hidden at home, and my rifle's at my mom's."  At his perked eyebrow, she explains some more.  "It was a thirteenth birthday present from my dad.  I used to hunt with it."

"Wait..." Sam says, fixing her with a weird look.  "Your dad gave you a  _gun_  for your birthday?"  She shrugs her shoulders and nods, looking casual.  She was so happy when he took her out to buy the gun.  They had gone hunting the day after and she had taken down a doe on her first try with it.

"Oddly enough with four boys in the family, I'm the hunter and mechanic," she says, a smile lighting up on her face.  "My father owned a mechanic shop and there are also a few classic cars at home that he used to work on.  My older brother runs his shop now, but I'm a better mechanic.  I built my bike."

Steve and Bucky smile at her and she knows that they like her bike.  It turns out that these two boys  _really_  like their motorcycles.  "I can let you two have a look at it if you want?" she suggests, smiling teasingly at them.

"Wait, really?" Steve asks, his eyes lighting up.  "I saw it getting out of the car and I really wanna see what you've done with it.  It looks like the bikes from when I was younger."  Her teasing grin turns into a small smirk and she shrugs, locking her eyes with Bucky's.

"What can I say?" she says, holding her hands out.  "I really like things from the forties."


	4. Chapter 4

She grins up at Bucky mischievously, easily catching the way his smile falters before it turns into a large shit-eating grin.  He leans towards her and she refuses to back down, leaving only a few inches between them.  She can feel the table's eyes on her and Bucky, and she can hear some of the not-so-hidden chuckles, but she ignores it.

"You flirtin' with me, doll?" he asks her, his voice low and smooth, his forties charm coming out.  She blinks her eyes at him innocently, tilting her head to the side.

"I don't know, Sarge," she says cheekily, a small smile tilting up her lips.  "Am I?"  Her eyelashes flutter some more in an innocent and doe-eyed look, but they both know that she's not innocent in any shape or form.  She scowls as the waitress from earlier clears her throat, holding a tray with a few dishes on it.

She huffs a puff of air through her nose, facing the waitress with a raised eyebrow as Bucky leans back into his chair.  "May I help you?" she asks politely, though it's obvious that the tone is fake and full of sarcasm.  The waitress seems to glower at her, but she doesn't look away, waiting for the waitress to answer her question.

The woman, big bust, blonde hair and all, turns her glower into an obviously fake smile.  "Yes," she says, her voice a bit higher pitched than normal as she tries to look carefree and cheery.  "I was wondering if you are finished with your plate?"  Her eyes flicker over to Bucky for a moment and she nearly groans aloud, knowing that the waitress is interested in him.

"Yes, actually," she says, making the waitress, Lexi according to her name-tag, look back to her.  "I am."  She hands the woman her clean plate, it clean of anything as she isn't keen on wasting food, and waits as Bucky hands over his own plate.  The waitress looks like she wants to say something, but she chickens out and runs back towards the kitchen.

She grins as she watches her walk away swiftly with a predatory glint in her eyes and she turns towards the table.  "I wonder why she ran off so quickly?" she questions, her voice innocent but full of not-so-hidden humor.  "I thought we were having a grand ole time."

Clint and Steve give her pointed looks, but she grins as a few people, mainly Bucky, chuckle at her fake innocence.  She shrugs off the looks.  "You can't blame me for messing with her," she defends herself, raising her hands up in the universal 'I'm innocent' sign.  "She kept coming over here every ten minutes and ruining conversation."

"I knew I liked you," Sam says, a teasing grin on his face.  "You are my new best friend."  She gives him a dull look and tilts her head to the side.

"I shot you in the shoulder," she states plainly, making him shrug his shoulders and wave his hand around.  She reaches towards her thigh with a small grin, beginning to take her paintball gun out of its holster.  "I can do it again if you'd like?"  His eyes widen and shoot down toward where her arm is slowly removing her pistol.

She pouts as Bucky's hand rests on hers, stopping her from removing the pistol completely.  "At least wait until we're outside, doll," he says, giving her a stern look as he whispers so only she can hear.  She can see the humor and amusement in his eyes, though, so she knows that he's not serious.  "I'll be able to join in."  She grins up at him and reholsters the gun, putting her hand on the table.

"Okay."  She glances over to Sam and gives a predatory grin at the worry in his face.  "Don't worry, Wilson.  I'm not going to shoot you," she says, tilting her head to the side.  "Yet."  His eyes widen and he shoots a look over to Bucky's own predatory look and then to Steve.

"Steve!" he shouts, his voice rising in pitch.  "Get your friend and his girlfriend to leave me alone!"  Her eyes snap to Bucky's as a small blush begins to take over her face, but it makes her feel better when she sees the redness in his ears.

Steve just rests his chin in his hand, looking at Sam with a raised eyebrow.  He glances at her and Bucky before blinking at Sam.  "They're just having some fun, Sam," he says, obviously amused and not worried.  "You  _did_  say that some fun would be good for the team, after all."  Sam glowers at Steve with a betrayed look in his eyes.

"They're gonna kill me!" he stresses, wildly waving his hand towards her and Bucky who are still looking at him with feral grins.  Her grin lightens up as she knows that he's not really panicking.  Okay, maybe he is.  Just a little.

She waves her hand around non-committedly.  "I have no idea what you're talking about, Wilson," Bucky says, cutting her off without knowing it.  She doesn't mind.  "All we're doing is talking about a little game of paintball."  He pauses for a moment as Sam relaxes a bit.  "And we're the only two with guns."  Sam shoots him a look before looking back to Steve so he can back him up.

"C'mon, Sam," she says soothingly, leaning forward.  "Are you that scared of a little girl missing half a leg?"  She flutters her eyelashes at him, nearly breaking character as he gives her a disbelieving look.

"You may be missing half a leg, but you're scary as fuck, girl!" he says loudly, waving his hands around again.  She doesn't say anything, grinning and deciding to lay off him for now.

Tony throws his napkin down and pushes his chair back.  "We should probably get going," he says, nodding towards the waitress for the check.  "The whole staff has been glaring at us for about an hour now."  She glances over them and grins sheepishly at their scowls that are pointed towards them.

"Yeah," she agrees, standing up.  She winces as she puts pressure on her leg, it being much sorer than she thought it would be.  She nearly stumbles as she pushes her chair back, but Bucky places a warm hand on her lower back.  He and Steve had stood up when she did, an endearing outdated practice from their time.  "Thanks."

He just nods at her and moves her chair back so she can get through.  Her leg shakes a bit, but she ignores it for now.  She has no doubt that her knee is going to be swollen when she gets home and that a rash is moving up her thighs from the silicon socket.

Obviously seeing her struggle, Bucky holds an arm out, letting her decide on whether or not she wants help.  She purses her lips for a few moments before looping her arm through his, stepping closer to him to get comfortable.

Tony pays the check, ignoring her when she insists on paying for the tip despite not being able to afford it, and they walk out of the restaurant and into the cooler air.  The sun is just starting to set and she's surprised to see that they've been at the restaurant for almost three hours.  They stop near Tony's orange car and the team turns towards her.

"It was nice meeting you all," she says, removing her arm from Bucky's.  She immediately misses his warmth, but she pushes it off.  "Maybe I'll see you at another paintball match?"  She doesn't sound too hopeful as she knows that the chance of that is pretty low.  They  _are_  the Avengers, after all, and they have work to do.

Steve grins at her and gives her his phone.  "Maybe we will," he says, gesturing to his phone.  It's open on the contacts page and she grins at the tall blonde, inputting her number into his phone.  She doesn't really intend on calling the blonde anytime soon, but she supposes it'll be nice to know if they're going to do another match soon.  She hands the phone back, only to have another thrusted into her hands.  This time by Sam.

"You were good out there," he says, sticking his one hand into his pocket causally.  "If you ever need any help, give me a call.  We'll all be happy to help if you need it."  She has a feeling that he's either talking about Daniel or his work down at the VA with veterans, or maybe both.  She smiles up at him and hands the phone back, nodding her head.

No one else hands over their phone, but she didn't really expect it.  They've only known each other for three hours and she can tell that some of them are somewhat suspicious of her or are just not too friendly with strangers.  She doesn't blame them.

Everyone crawls into the call, and with a few words exchanged between them and Bucky, Tony drives off.  She watches as they travel out of sight and she turns to Bucky, beginning to walk over to her bike.  "It was nice you meet you," she says, unlocking the storage compartment to retrieve her helmet and gloves.  She slips them on as she sits on her bike, tossing her pistol into it and putting her jacket on.

"It was nice to meet you, too, Aurelia," he says, watching as she puts her helmet.  She doesn't flip her visor down and she looks at him quizzically, wondering why he hasn't ridden off yet.  He smiles sheepishly and messes up his hair.  "I hope you don't mind if I follow you back?  I just want to make sure you're safe."

She smiles softly and shrugs her shoulders, knowing that he's only offered because he's still used to customs from the forties and that he's worried.  She knows that he saw the way her leg was trembling and she would be worried, too.  "I don't mind, though it's a bit out of the way."  He just shrugs his shoulders and walks over to his bike which sits only a few parking spots away from her.

She starts up the engine, waiting for him to do the same before speeding off.  She doesn't put too much thought of him right behind her as she rides through the streets.  They're not too far from Brooklyn, where she lives, though she knows that he lives in the Stark or Avengers Tower where all of the Avengers live, which is located in Manhattan.  She's kinda touched that he is willing to go this far because it'll take him around an hour to get to the Tower.

Within fifteen minutes, she's riding down the main road where her apartment sits.  It sits two floors above an old bookstore in an older building, but she doesn't mind as the rent's cheap enough.  She cuts her engine as she parks her bike in the alleyway where the door to her apartment is located.

She takes off her helmet but doesn't bother putting it in her storage compartment as she usually just brings it up with her.  She turns to Bucky as she gets off her bike, watching as he sits there and takes off his helmet as well.  He tucks it under her arm and grins at her.  She smiles back as he reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone.

She takes it and inputs her contact, smiling softly at him.  She takes her out her phone and hands it to him as well, ignoring the blush rising to her cheeks as he types in his contact.  She takes it and snorts at what he's put himself as _Sarge_.  She grins at him, though it softens as they stand there a bit awkwardly.

He clears his throat, mussing up his hair.  "I guess this is goodbye for now?" he says.  His tone is a bit sad and she knows that despite knowing him for about three hours, they're already great friends.  She can't help the jolt that runs through her at the word, knowing that she wants to be more.

She clears her throat and toes around, nodding her head.  "Yeah," she says softly.  "I guess it is."  She smiles at him and takes out her keys, limping towards her door.  "I'll see you soon, Sarge."  He nods, puts on his helmet, and backs out of the alley.  He waves and then he's gone.

Her smile drops as she walks into her apartment, sighing softly.  She walks up the two flights of stairs, grimacing at the pain in her knee and the stub of her leg, unlocking her door and turning the lights on.

She walks through her apartment, undressing as she makes her way towards her bedroom.  She pulls off her shorts, jacket, and t-shirt, placing her helmet on her dresser, and grabs a pair of long pajama pants and a tank-top.

She dresses and limps out to her kitchen, grabbing an ice-pack for her leg.  She sits heavily on her couch, turns on the T.V. for background noise, and sighs in relief as she pulls off her prosthetic.

She flinches as the cold of the ice-pack rests against her knee and the stub of her leg.  Her leg got amputated about an inch below her knee, so a lot of pressure on her leg from her prosthetic causes her knee to swell.

She sits there for who knows how long as the sky darkens, her eyes slowly getting heavier.  She blinks as her phone chimes and is shocked to see it is nearly ten at night.  It's been three hours since she's got home.

 _Sarge:  Goodnight, doll._   A smile lifts on her lips as she sleepily types a response.

 _You:  Night, soldier._   At that, her eyes slide close and she falls asleep on her couch, a smile on her lips.


	5. Chapter 5

She pushes herself up groggily, squinting through the light of her T.V. as she looks at her clock.  _3:07 a. m.,_ it says.  She frowns and looks around, confused as to why she woke up.  She maneuvers herself on the couch, hearing a  _slush_  sound as her melted ice pack falls off her leg and knee, reminding her that she doesn't have her prosthetic on.

She blinks blearily as she feels around for her prosthetic, not able to see properly through the flickering lights emitting from her T.V.  Her hand touches the cold metal and she slides her leg into it, happy that her leg no longer aches as bad as it did hours ago.

She rubs her eyes as she yawns, stretching a little bit to loosen her stiff muscles from laying on the couch.   _I probably should have gone to sleep in my bed rather than on the couch..._ she thinks, stumbling as she stands up, still mostly out of it.

She's usually really groggy and has trouble forming proper thoughts when she wakes up suddenly in the middle of the night, so she knows how to get herself up without too much trouble.  She knows that she won't be able to fall asleep and if she did, she'll wake up every hour and feel even worse than she does now.

As she heads into her kitchen with the melted ice-pack, her fake foot gets caught on something around five times, nearly causing her to fall.  The foot is kinda the same as her leg, mostly wire-looking, but certain points, like the part connected to the ankle and the toes, are black rubbery plastic.  While it may provide a grip for her, it also causes it to stick to the floor sometimes.

She curses under her breath as she lands roughly on the counter, it digging into her ribs.  " _Mother fucker_!" she yelps, her arm instinctually moving to cradle her ribs.  She breathes in a few times, the pain helping the fogginess in her mind to fade a bit.  She mutters under her breath and rubs the sore spot, knowing that she'll have a bruise there by the morning.

She throws the melted ice-pack into her sparse freezer, grabbing another smaller one to soothe her ribs.  She hisses as she presses it to her ribs, it freezing through the thin fabric of her tank top.  She shudders as goosebumps travel across her arms, but she grabs a glass and fills it with water from her sink.

With her back turned towards the entrance of her apartment, and the sound of rushing water and the T.V. blaring loudly drowning out all other sounds through her small apartment, she's too late to realize that she's not alone.

Someone pushes her roughly from behind, hitting her ribs, and her half-filled glass shatters against the ground.  She lands on her hands and knees, slicing her skin in the process, groaning at the sharp sting in her ribs.  Despite her grogginess, she spins and takes her attacker's feet out from under him.

She rolls out of the way as another man jumps at her and she pushes herself to her feet, throwing herself over her counter.  Her attackers hadn't expected her to do that, but she hadn't realized that there was a third man hiding in the shadows of her apartment where the light from her T.V. doesn't meet.

She yells out loudly as he grabs her, gripping her arms in a bruising grip, and throws her prosthetic backward, knowing that it'll hurt more than her real foot ever would.  Her attacker cusses out as she hits him again, sprinting into her living room as he lets go of her.  She swipes her phone from the couch and jumps into her bedroom, bolting the door behind her, happy that she decided to spend over fifty dollars on it.

She hears the men yell and slam on the door, wildly twisting her doorknob.  For now, she knows she's safe, but she knows that they'll break in sooner or later.  She allows herself a moment of panic, her heart beating wildly in her chest and her breaths coming out pants.  It's only when she hears a familiar voice yell out, that she breaks out of her panic.

"C'mon, Relia!" Daniel shouts out in a slight slur.  "I told you I was gonna see you soon.  I even brought a few friends!"  Her lips curl up in a snarl as she runs into her bathroom, clutching her phone in one hand as she locks the bathroom door.  She reaches under her cabinet and pulls out a gun that she had hidden in a pack of pads.  She knew that no one would accidentally find it hidden there.

 _Of'_  course _,_  she mentally snarls, checking the magazine before turning off the safety on her gun.   _Of course, it's that dick!   He can't just leave me alone, can he?_   More banging on her door ensues, along with a lot of jeers and jests from Daniel's friends.  She knows they're drunk, but that only means that they're more dangerous.

In any other situation, she would be able to take them on head to head, but with her leg beginning to ache again and with her mind somehow still a muddled mess, and with them drunk, there's no way she can get out unscathed.  She looks down at her hands and knees, snorting at her thoughts, seeing her pajama pants beginning to stick to her legs from the blood from her cuts.  Blood is also beginning to pour down her forearms.

Her hands shake for a moment before she takes in a deep breath and steadies them.  She doesn't want to kill any of them, despite how much she'd really love to, but she doesn't really have any choice.  She flinches as the door is abused again, knowing for sure that she'll get hurt.  Unless...

Her eyes flicker down to her phone that she dropped on the ground.  She gnaws on her lower lip for a few minutes, not knowing whether or not she should call them.   _They did offer to help whenever you need it,_  her mind points out.  She huffs out a breath in frustration as her bolt lock strains against its abuse.  She knows that no one's going to hear what's going on.  The second level of the building is unoccupied and the closest apartment is nearly a block away.

She closes her eyes, curses, and picks up her phone.  She stares down at her hand for a moment, noting the blood on it, before wiping it on her pants.  It takes her another moment to pull up the contacts in her phone, trying to decide who to call.

 _I could call Sam,_  she thinks.   _He_ did _tell me to call him if Daniel tried to fuck with me again.  But on the other hand, I barely know him.  I've only spoken a few words to him._   She looks at the contact below it: _Sarge._

Should she call him?  Despite not knowing the soldier for long,  _three hours;_ her mind points out, she feels like she can trust him.  He  _did_  follow her back to her apartment to make sure she was safe, after all.  She bites her lip and clicks on the contact before she can freeze up again.

She huddles in the spot between her sink cupboard and toilet, the spot being out of view to those who walk into the bathroom.  The phone rings twice before he picks up.   _"Aurelia?"_  he asks, his voice rough, slow, and deep with sleep.  She momentarily feels guilty until the banging on her door increases and more jests are shouted through it.  It seems that he hears it, too.   _"What's wrong?"_

"Uhm... remember my ex that I told you about?" she says lowly into her phone.  "The one I said that everyone didn't have to worry about?"  She mentally winces at her childish and high-pitched tone.  "Yeah."  She swallows.  "I was wrong."

She can hear him yelling, but she can't understand what he's saying.  There's the sound of drawers slamming and she knows that he's getting dressed.  Her face flushes at the thought of him sleeping in nothing, though she suspects that that's not the case.

 _"Where are you?"_ he mutters to her in a rush.  _"What's happening?"_   She swiftly explains to him that she's still in her apartment and that she didn't realize Daniel and his friends were there, too, until they shoved her to the ground.  She doesn't mention that she's currently bleeding with bits of glass sticking out of her legs, hands, and arms, though.

"I'm hidden in my bathroom right now," she says, hearing him run through what she assumes is a corridor in the Tower.  "I've got a gun on me, but there's three of them and we'll be in a tight space.  They're trying to break my bedroom door down, and I give it another twenty minutes or so until they break into my room.  Thirty or so in total until they get into my bathroom."

 _"Any way you can get out of your apartment?"_  he mutters to her, though she can barely hear it through the rush of wind around the mic, making her assume that he's on his bike.  She sighs frustratedly and runs her hand through her hair.

"No," she practically spits out.  "The owner of the building decided it was a good idea to tear down all of the fire escapes and it's a twenty-or-so-foot drop from my windows, but with my leg, I won't be able to land safely without seriously injurin' myself."  She hears him snarl frustratedly and she can't help the flutter in her chest, despite the pounding on her door, as she knows that he's worried about her.

She waits twenty minutes until she hears a loud boom in her apartment.  She pales as she realizes that the door to her bedroom has been broken through.  She pales even further as her bathroom door rattles.  She checks over her gun again, making sure it's ready to shoot, before aiming it towards the door.   _It's okay,_  she thinks to herself.   _You can do this.  You're a sniper God damn it!_

She sighs and steadies her hands, barely flinching as another loud boom echoes through her apartment.  Her heart flutters painfully in her chest as grunts and hollers sound from the other side of her door.  Her breath catches in her throat as the noises stop.

The doorknob rattles and she doesn't lower her gun.  "Aurelia?" a low voice mutters through the door.  "It's Bucky and Steve, can you open the door?"  It barely takes her a second to clamber onto her shaky legs, wincing at the sharp aching pain, and unlocks her door.

She leans against her sink, her head nodding from side to side.  Her vision is swimming and it feels like her vision is darkening, her mind still in a fog.  "I think I was drugged earlier," she slurs as they run to her bloody form.

"You didn't tell us you were hurt!" Bucky hisses between his teeth, grabbing a towel, wetting it, and placing it against her leg and knee.  The other leg is perfectly fine as her silicon socket stopped the glass from piercing into her.

"She's lost a lot of blood," Steve mutters.  "We have to get her to the hospital.  And if she's correct about being drugged, it could be even worse."  It takes her a few moments to sort through what he's saying before she sits up sharply, wincing as her vision swims again.

"No hospitals!" she hisses, trying to pull away from the warm and cold hands on her.  Bucky easily overpowers her and her breathing becomes labored.  "No.  Hospital."  Bucky shushes her softly, dabbing at her bloody leg and forearms.  She doesn't see how Steve and he glanced at each other.

"Okay.  No hospitals," Steve agrees reluctantly.  "But we're taking you to the Tower to get patched up."  She shakes her head, but her vision once again blurs and dims, making her stumble to the side.  Bucky grabs her and holds her to his chest.  She pushes against him but settles as she realizes that she's not going to be able to get out of his grip.

"Shh," Bucky hums, walking through her apartment.  She can't get a glance at David and his two friends, but she knows the two men must be black and blue and unconscious.  She huddles closer to Bucky's warmth as they step outside.

He puts a helmet over her head and she doesn't bother to fight him as he slips onto his bike in front of her.  "Hold on tight, doll," he says, starting up the engine.  "We'll get to the Tower soon.  Then you can tell us what exactly happened."  She just tightens her arms around his waist and lays her head between his shoulders, the movement of the bike giving her nausea.

In the blink of an eye, she's no longer on the streets of Brooklyn, but she's being carried into the Avengers Tower.  She tries to struggle, but that just leads to Bucky holding her tighter.  She slumps in his arms and closes her eyes as her vision begins to black-out.

"Aurelia?" she barely hears someone call, making her eyebrows furrow.  It sounds like they're yelling at her from underwater.  "C'mon, don't close your eyes!"  She frowns and tries to shake her head, but it just lolls to the side, feeling herself being pulled under once again.

The shouts become quieter and quieter until all she sees is black.


	6. Chapter 6

When she comes back to consciousness, the first thing she realizes is that she's laying on her side, her right leg under her full one.  The next thing she realizes is that her arms and legs hurt.

She murmurs under her breath and curls up further, only to realize that she has an IV in her arm and that she's not alone in the room.  A room that she is completely unfamiliar with.  She jolts up, wincing at the ache in her ribs, remembering that she knocked them into her counter.

She blinks her eyes open as two hands rest on her hands, one cold and smooth metal, and the other warm and calloused.   _Bucky,_  her mind supplies.  She frowns in confusion for a few moments as her dark blue eyes meet his light blue ones before her memories crash into her.

"Easy there, doll," he mutters as she looks around herself in confusion, shaking her head as it still feels a little blurry.  "You were right about being drugged.  The waitress at the restaurant confessed to slipping something into all of your waters."  She scowls, but it's not aimed at him.

"I knew I didn't like her," she mutters, coughing as her voice cracks.  She smiles as Bucky hands her a glass of water and she sips at it slowly, knowing that it'd be a bad idea to drink it all right off the bat.  Bucky quirks a smile at her before moving off her bed and into the chair right beside it.

She blinks at the space around her, feeling more awake now that she's got some water into her.  She looks at her IV in confusion, not knowing why she has it.  But by the pain in her legs and arms increasing, she has a feeling that it's just a mild pain medication.

"Bruce thought it'd be a good idea to give you some pain meds," Bucky supplies, texting someone before slipping his phone into the pocket of his jeans.  "Said not to worry about the money for it, though."  He waves a hand around as she goes to protest, but she's happy that she won't have to pay.  She's also happy that they hadn't taken her to the hospital as her mother would have been informed if she was checked in.

"Why the pain meds?" She asks, still wondering why she has an IV in the first place.  "Not that I'm not thankful for them," she says, sticking her hands out at his raised eyebrow.  "But, why give me an IV?"

His eyes slide over to her arms that are hidden under a long-sleeved shirt that she  _knows_  is not her own and then down to her left leg.  "Turns out that you had some pretty big shards of glass in your leg and arms," he supplies, making her blink in shock.  "You lost a lot of blood and you needed stitches.  You also fractured a few ribs."

She pulls up the sleeves to her shirt and picks at the gauze bandage on her forearm.  Bucky swats her hand away and she glares at him but stops.  She looks up as the door opens and an older man with graying hair walks in.  He's got a lab coat on over brown slacks and a white button down and he has a clipboard in his hands.

He smiles tentatively at her and she easily recognizes him as Bruce Banner.  "Hi," he says, his voice softer than she expected.  "Dr. Banner.  I'm the one that patched you up."  She beams up at him.

"Thanks," she says warmly, shifting around as her ribs begin to ache softly.  She looks around her for her prosthetic, but she frowns as she doesn't see it.  "Where's my leg?"  Bucky chuckles and Dr. Banner smiles softly.

"Yeah..." Tony trails off as he walks into the room, her prosthetic in his hands.  She gestures for him to hand it over and he does so.  "I told you I wanted a look at it.  It's much more complex than I was expecting."  She looks it over before placing it next to her on the bed.  "And that little trigger by the ankle that makes it so you can run better?  Brilliant."  She blushes a little at the attention but looks over at Dr. Banner.  And she's going to refer to him as such until he tells her to call him Bruce.

"So, what's the diagnosis, doc?" she jokes, feeling a bit uncomfortable with all of the eyes on her.  He frowns down at his clipboard as he fiddles with a few pages and then gives a pointed look towards Tony and Bucky.  They both step out of the room and close the door behind them, leaving her alone with Dr. Banner.

"Well... Miss Aurelia, you've been here for a little over ten hours," he says, taking the vacant seat.  "Two of your lower ribs are fractured, not sure how yet.  We had to remove fifteen shards of glass from your left leg and both forearms, seven of which were big and caused you to need stitches, and your knee is swollen.  That's most likely from your prosthetic, though, but I'd suggest keeping off that leg of yours and put some ice on it."  He's rambling.  She knows that.   _He_  knows that.  Now all she has to do is find out  _why_.

"Dr. Banner," she says, cutting him off.  He looks at her with eyes that are too wide to not be a bit suspicious.  "What aren't you telling me?"  He grimaces and fiddles around with his clipboard, clearing his throat awkwardly.

"The drug they used was specifically designed on someone of your build and height in mind," he starts off, refusing to meet her eyes.  "What the drug does is supposed to make the person who has it in their system confused, disoriented, and unable to fight back in any case.  That usually lasts for about ten or so hours."  She nods her head.

"So... it was a date rape drug, then?" she asks needlessly, lifting an eyebrow up.  He nods nervously and still refuses to meet her eyes.  She just shrugs her shoulders and he looks at her, concern and confusion in his eyes.  "If you're worried about me being affected by the fact that they planned on raping me, you don't have to worry about it."  She chuckles darkly.  "I had a pretty good idea when they grabbed at me and jeered through the door."

He moves around in the chair nervously and his eyes return to his clipboard.  "It'll take your ribs between three to six weeks to heal and I'd suggest resting as much as possible, try not to make sharp movements and put some ice on them if they begin to ache."  He flips through a few more pages.

"Your right arm has two sets of stitches, your left one has one, and your left leg has the remaining four.  Two by your knee and two on your shin.  I'd suggest coming back here in two weeks to get them removed and do you know how to clean them?"  At her nod, he continues.  "I probably don't have to tell you to take it easy but please,  _please,_  try to take it easy.  If you rip them, you'll have to go to the hospital to get them redone, because I won't do them."  She pouts at him but takes the warning to heart.

He stands up, checks over a few things and removes her IV, checks her vitals, and stops by the door.  "You should be perfectly fine using over-the-counter pain meds, but if you can't handle it, I'll be happy to prescribe you some."  He gives her a stern look.  "Call anyone if you need help and I'll check everything over.  But, for now, it was nice to meet you Aurelia and I think that you have some talking to do."  At that, he opens the door and leaves.

She just blinks at the door for a few moments before Tony, Bucky, and Steve walk in.   _Oh, goodie,_  she cheers sarcastically in her mind.   _Time to get interrogated.  Yay._   She smiles at them as they take seats around the room, Bucky in the chair next to her bed.

Steve gives her a sympathetic smile as he sits up in his chair, preparing to ask her questions.  "Do we really need to ask her questions, now?" Bucky asks before Steve can say anything.  "She  _just_  woke up, Steve."  Steve sighs, as if they've gone over this a hundred times, and fixes his gaze to his.

"I told you, Buck.  The memories will be fresher since she's just woken up," he says, sending her an apologetic smile.  "We need to get all of the information before any legal action is taken."  She blinks at him.

"Wait, legal action?" she says, confusion clear in her voice.  "What do you mean?"  Her gaze goes from Steve's apologetic eyes to Tony's bored gaze, to Bucky's concerned glance.  They all share a glance and that makes her huff out an annoyed breath.

"Doll, they planned on  _raping_  you," Bucky spits out, making her blink a the venom in his voice.  "Not only that, but they attacked you.  They're going for jail for that and I sure as hell hope that you plan on putting a restraining order on that ex of yours."

"Yeah, I know what they planned on doing," she hisses out.  "But why am I talking to you guys about this?  Yeah, you're the Avengers and all, but I barely know you.  I can just go to the local bureau and file a restraining order and tell an officer what's happened."

He gives her a dull look, but it's Steve who answers with an apologetic look.  "Since we interfered, we've got to be the ones to get all of the information," he says, guilt clear in his voice.  "Not only that, but there's no real proof other than your phone call."  At her confused look, he elaborates.  "All of our phones copy every single call we have just in case, and since you called Bucky, your phone call was recorded.  The three attackers are also currently held downstairs in our cells." 

She blinks at them with a disbelieving look.  "You guys have  _cells_?" she says, her voice beginning to rise to a higher pitch and she knows hysteria is settling in.  "What the hell  _for_?"  She waves her hands around.   _Yeah, hysteria is definitely settling in._   She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, aware of all of their eyes on her.  "Okay," she sighs.  "Just get on with it."

And that's how the next two or so hours are spent.  Her telling them everything that happened as soon as Bucky left her apartment to when they found her.  After that, they had escorted her down to the local police station to file a restraining order on Daniel, as well as showing them her call to Bucky.

According to the police, apparently, he's going to be in jail for a  _long_  time as he's also wanted for other crimes.  Sam had driven the three attackers down and they all sat in the room for around thirty minutes, building up her case.

She sighs as she steps out of the build, leaning on the brick wall for a few moments.  Steve and Sam are still inside talking over a few things, but Bucky came after her.  She had just been given the court date for Daniel's trial and she'd be a liar to say that she wants to go.  But if she wants him and his friends in jail, she's going to have to testify.

"Long day?" Bucky asks her.  She snorts out a soft laugh and nods her head, knowing that he knows how long the day was.  He's been with her ever since Bruce had left and she's not afraid to admit that she's happy that he's been there with her.  She barely knows him, but she feels safe with him.

She sighs softly.  "Thanks for being here with me today," she says, opening her eyes to give him a meaningful look.  "You barely know me, yet you've helped me.  Especially last night.  So, thanks for that."  Her heart flutters as he gives her a boyish smile, once again reminding her of the old Bucky Barns from the forties.  Except with a metal arm and longer hair.

"Don't have to thank me, doll," he says, leaning against the wall. "I'm happy to help."  She goes to protest but his stern look stops her before he starts.  He looks down at her for a few moments and then his eyes light up.  "How about this?" he says, a mischievous smirk growing on his lips.  "You let me take you out to dinner to make it up to me?"

She thinks it over for a few moments, noting that it's about six in the afternoon.  A small smile grows on her lips and she nods her head at him.  "I'd love to, but you need to take me to my apartment to get changed."  She blinks for a few moments, a thought striking her.  "Is my apartment cleaned up?"

He chuckles.  "We had a few people take the three from your apartment, take a few pictures for your case, and clean it up.  Nothing should have been taken and it's been cleaned.  All we have to do is ditch Steve and Sam."

"What about me and Sam?" Steve says, walking out of the building.  She jumps at his sudden appearance but settles as she realizes that it's just him and Sam.  A small smile grows on her lips as he looks at her with curiosity.

"Nothing," she hums, pushing off the wall and hiding a wince at the sting in her ribs.   _I really need to get some Tylenol or Advil._   "Sarge and I were just talkin' about how you've got to visit this one place in Brooklyn.  It sells all types of things and I think I saw some old  _Captain America_  merch."

Sam grins over at the captain, a smirk beginning to grow on his lips.  "We totally have to go," he says at Steve's groan as she hands him her phone with the address.  He types it into his own phone before looking up at her.  "You two joining us?"  He looks over at her and Bucky and she shrugs her shoulders.

"He was gonna give me a ride home so I can change and get some painkillers in me," she says, pointing over her shoulder at the soldier.  She hadn't had the chance to change after she woke up, so shes still wearing what she found out to be Bucky's shirt and a pair of Natasha's shorts, meaning her prosthetic and bandaged legs are on display.

Sam gives her a look that tells her that he knows what's going on, but Steve seems to fall for it.   _That or he's just really good at hiding what he's thinking,_  she thinks to herself, noticing the way he smiles at Bucky.

"Okay," Steve says with a sympathetic smile towards her, walking over to Sam's borrowed car.  "We'll see you guys later."  Sam jumps in the car after a look to her and Bucky and they drive off.  The two of them stare after the car for a few moments before she turns to Bucky with a grin.

"That worked out well," she hums, limping over to his bike and putting on his extra helmet.  In truth, she really does intend on taking some pain pills as her ribs are aching fiercely and her right leg is beginning to hurt from her prosthetic again.

He jumps on his bike and she hesitates a moment before wrapping her arms around his middle.  "Let's get out of here, doll," he says, starting the engine and making his way to her apartment.  She smiles as she watches the scenery, excited about hanging out with him.   _This should be fun._


	7. Chapter 7

"Do you always drive so slow?" she mutters, jumping off the bike and handing him her helmet.  He rolls his eyes at her as she opens the door leading to her apartment, grunting as she heads up the first flight of stairs.  She gives Bucky a slightly annoyed but thankful smile as his hand comes to rest on the small of her back, making sure she doesn't fall backward.  "Thanks."

"I'm not slow," he says as she pushes her door open, having been told that they had left her apartment door unlocked.  "I just like to make sure that I don't wreck into anything.  The streets are much more dangerous than they used to be."  She gives him a dry look.

"And picking fights with boys in back alleys weren't dangerous?" she mutters sarcastically, limping into her bathroom and grabbing some cheap version of Tylenol.  She uses her hands to scoop water into her mouth before swallowing the two pills, limping back into her living room where Bucky's looking at her stuff.

He sends her a small smirk.  "I wasn't the one pickin' fights, doll.  That was Steve."  She snorts and shakes her head.   _Of course, Captain America picked fights back in the forties, even if he was small.  He seems like the kid to never give up even if he's outnumbered... or outweighed, more like._

His smirk grows at her eye roll.  "You'll be fine out here while I change?" she asks, leaning against the door frame of her bedroom.  "Go ahead an look around.  I've got nothing to hide."  At his nod, she turns around and pushes the idea of him rooting around in her living room away.

The first thing she does is take off her leg, switching it out for one of the other ones in her closet.  Her current one is a bit too loose and the other ones are a bit tighter so her knee shouldn't move so much.  She grabs one that looks a lot like Bucky's arm.  The steel is unpainted and smooth with a few lines on it to make out her calf muscle and a few other parts of her leg in different sections.

She grabs a pair of tight dark blue jeans and changes her bra, deciding to steal Bucky's shirt and keep it on.  She jumps into her bathroom and tames her dark-colored curls, brushing her teeth and tying her hair up.  She doesn't bother with make-up and leaves her hair down, nodding to her reflection.

She freezes in her doorway as Bucky looks over one of her guns that was hidden in her living room.  She had kept this one hidden in her bookshelf behind a few books so it's not so much of a big deal that he found it.  He was probably just looking at her books.

He turns towards her, looking over the gun in his hands with fascination.  He looks it over for a few more moments before his eyes meet hers.  "It's a good idea to hide this in your bookshelf," he says, putting it back behind her books.  "However, you should probably put in a better spot where people won't find it accidentally."  He gives her this stern look and it causes her face to flush as she rubs her arm.

His eyes trail over her at that and his mouth quirks up in amusement as he sees her leg.  "Nice leg," he says with a smile, meeting her eyes.  His left hand twitches and she has a feeling that he knows where she got the inspiration for her leg.  She wrings her hands together as she looks down, letting her hair cover her flushed cheeks.

"I saw the footage of the soldier a while back.  Thought the arm looked cool," she says, not meeting his eyes.  "I decided to take inspiration and make my leg look like yours.  My brothers thought I was nuts for copying a Hydra weapon.  I told them that it was just a cool looking prosthetic and that it should be used for inspiration."

She doesn't hear him walk up to her, but she sees his boots come into her sight.  She doesn't look up and he moves his left hand and rests it on her cheek.  She doesn't pull away and he tilts her head up with his fingers under her chin.  Her eyes meet his and she can see the emotion hiding in them.

There's disgust and she somehow knows that it's pointed towards his arm.  But there's also warmth and gratitude.  At her?  She doesn't know, though she can tell that he's grateful that she doesn't seem afraid of his arm.  That she thinks it's cool and she made her own prosthetic look like it.  She swallows and raises her hand up to rest on his wrist, squeezing it.

He pulls away and her gaze flickers over to her clock and then to her window.  An hour has already gone by and she knows that most of it was spent on their journey here.  They had to travel through a lot of traffic on the bridge and then on the way around the city as there were a few accidents from some ice.

It's nearing February and while the snow has let up this year, ice still remains.  That also means that the sky still darkens early.  It's nearly pitch black out and to be honest she'd rather stay in her apartment than go out for dinner.  But Bucky had offered and she likes him, so she'd go.

As if he read her mind, he says, "Would you rather get some takeout and watch movies or something?  It's dark out and I don't really feel like going anywhere right now."  He's taken a few step backs and he looks a little sheepish as he says the words, but she smiles up at him.

"That'd be nice," she says softly, walking over to her T.V. and turning it on.  "I don't really feel like going out anyway.  My leg's starting to hurt."  She pats the seat beside her and he sits down, leaning back and watching the screen. "Okay, why don't you pick a movie and I'll call for some pizza?"  At the nod of his head, she walks into the kitchen and rings one of the closer pizza shops.

 _"Ricci Bruno's_ _Pizzeria_ _, what would you like to order?"_  someone with a very Italian accent speaks over the phone.

"Hi.  I would like to place a delivery for two large pizzas.  One pepperoni and one meat-lovers," she says, glancing over at Bucky.  He nods his head in agreement to her choices and continues searching for something to watch, his eyes narrowed at the screen in concentration.  "Can we also have a pack of breadsticks?"

 _"Of course, ma'am.  Address?"_   She gives her address and waits as the person on the phone writes the order.   _"Someone will be there in fifteen minutes, ma'am."_

"Thank you," she says.  "And please tell the delivery guy that someone'll be outside to get the order."  She hangs up the phone and walks over to Bucky, happy that the pain meds are kicking in.  "Should be about fifteen minutes.  Do you mind going down when he comes?"

"That's fine.  And I'm paying."  When she goes to protest he gives her a playful, but stern look.  "I said I wanted to buy you dinner, doll," he reminds her.  "And just because plans changed that doesn't mean I'm not going to not buy you dinner."  She smiles sheepishly at him.

"Thanks.  What did you choose?" she says, sitting next to him on her old couch.  She's sitting close enough that she can feel the heat he emits, but not close enough to actually touch.  Her eyes light up as she sees the title on the screen and she smiles up at him.

"Is this movie good?" he asks, obviously seeing her smile.  "Steve says that he's seen it with Sam and Natasha once, but I haven't seen it yet."

"I love this movie!  It's my favorite," she practically squeals, refraining from bouncing in place.  "It's a  _Disney_ movie.  You should know what  _Disney_ is, right?"  At his hesitant nod she continues.  "This girl who lives in China is the exact opposite of her expectations and then her father gets drafted or something similar into the army because this guy wants to take over China, but she ends up taking her father's place, and..."  She gets cut off by someone knocking on the door downstairs.

"And, that'll be the pizza," Bucky says, grinning at her.  He hands her the remote and he walks out of the door with a wink.  She ignores the blush on her cheeks and grabs two glasses out of her cupboard, filling hers with water and waiting for him to get back before filling his glass, too.

She mutters the words to each song under her breath as she finishes her pizza, slowly inching over to Bucky as she does so.  She's not consciously doing it, and when she notices, she doesn't pull away as he throws his arm over her shoulder and grins down at her.

She flinches and tenses as the fireworks near the end of the movie go off, her eyes widening as her face pales.  Her breath hitches in her throat as she's drawn into a memory.

 _"Guys!" she shouts as the enemy soldiers begin to surround them.  "Get out of here.  Now!  That's an order!"_    _She glares at them as they attempt to protest._

_"Not without you!" the soldier to her right yells.  She doesn't remember any of their names.  They've only met once and it's for this mission only.  After this, they'll most likely never see each other again.  She glares at him as she fires off a few rounds with her pistol.  Ammo's running out and she's going to have to act fast as they're pushed closer and closer to a dead end._

_"I'm right behind you," she says as calmly as she can.  "Just go!"  She can see reluctance in all of their eyes, but with a glance towards the enemy soldiers advancing, they run off.  She shoots a few of them and waits ten seconds for them to run, taking one step back every second._

_Once ten seconds are over, and she's made sure that the soldiers under her command are safe, she pulls the trigger to her_ _grenade and throws it.  The enemy soldier could barely see it in the dark, though she knows that they know what it is when it bounces off the ground._

_She spins around and runs as fast as she can, knowing that she only has four seconds to get out of the blast radius.  She knows that she'll make it, though she knows that she'll get hurt.  She yells out as pain as she's pushed forward by the blast, shards of the large metal tunnel around her flying around._

_She screams out as her leg explodes in pain, a large metal shard sticking out of it.  She feels the arms of her squadron grab her and run, her ears ringing as her leg begins to lose feeling but burns with fire at the same time..._

Shuddering gasps leave her throat as tears leave her eyes.  She can feel hands on her and the cold from the one slowly brings her out of the memory.  Her ears are ringing and all she can hear is the blast of the grenade and the screaming of her squadron and the enemy soldiers.

She whimpers as phantom pain explodes in her leg and she curls in on herself, clenching her eyes shut.  The ringing in her ears slowly lessens and she can hear Bucky talking to her.  "It's okay.  You're going to be okay.  You're not there anymore.  Listen to my voice."  She continues gasping for breath as he pulls her into his lap.  "Aurelia.  Look at me.  Look at me, Relia."

At the familiar nickname, and the order, she opens her eyes that are blurry from tears and they meet cool blue ones.  He brings his metal hand to her face and rubs his thumb over her cheek.  She doesn't hear any other sound in her apartment other than Bucky's voice and the continuous ringing in her ears.

"That's it, doll.  Look at me.  Focus on my voice.  Are you listening to me?" he asks her.  She nods jerkily and he continues.  "That's good.  You're doing well, Relia.  Just take deep breaths.  Watch me."  She does as he says and tries to follow what he's doing, but it doesn't work and she's still gasping five minutes later.  He curses out in what she assumes is Russian and he grabs her hand, placing it on his chest.

"Feel my heartbeat, doll.  Focus on that.  Can you feel it?"  She narrows her eyes as she tries to focus on his heartbeat, but she shakes her head and whimpers out that she can't feel it.  He swiftly pulls his shirt over his head and places her hand over his warm skin.

She trembles in his lap and feels the consistent and slow beating of his heart.  She leans her head forward and presses it against his shoulder, the one where his prosthetic is attached to his body and sighs at the cold of it.

"That's it, doll," he whispers into her ear as her breathing slows and her shudders turn into soft trembles.  "Good.  You're doing good.  That's it.  You're in your apartment.  We're watching a movie and eating pizza.  You're safe."

They sit there in silence and the ringing in her ears stop.  By the time she gets her breathing under control, her trembling is nearly gone and her tears have dried up.  She leans back and rubs at her eyes, the occasional sniffle leaving her.  Bucky hands her a few tissues from her side table and her glass of water.

She gulps it down slowly and blows her nose, taking a few more sips from her water.  Bucky's absentmindedly rubbing his hand over her back in soothing circular motions and she calms down.

She clears her throat before speaking.  "Thank you," she says weakly, still sitting in his lap but refusing to meet his gaze.  "I haven't had an attack for over a year.  I'm sorry you had to see that."

"It's fine, doll," he murmurs, tilting her head up by her chin.  "Was it the fireworks?"  She nods sheepishly and her face flushes in shame.  "Don't worry about it.  It used to get me all the time.  Still does sometimes."  She nods and swallows thickly.

"I haven't seen it since before being deployed the second time a little over three years ago.  I forgot about the fireworks."

"You forgot something in your favorite movie?" he teases softly,  _trying to lighten the mood_ -she realizes.  "How dare you."  Her lips quirk into a weak smile.

"I know, I know," she says in a soft joking tone.  "'Dishonor on you.  Dishonor on your cow.'"  They both laugh at her crap impression of Mushu.  She smiles softly but it falls into a frown at the memory of a few seconds ago.  He grabs her chin again and moves a tangle of dark hair from her face.

"Hey, hey," he soothes.  "None of that.  Let's continue the movie, okay?"  She nods her head and he skips past the rest of the firework scene.  She smiles thankfully at him and they continue to watch the movie.


	8. Chapter 8

Bucky closes his eyes as he walks out of the apartment building, breathing in the cold morning air.  He and Aurelia had ended up falling asleep on the couch watching  _Beauty and the Beast_  and he has no doubt that everyone at the Tower has picked up on his absence.  He had woken up before her and he had put her in her bed.  When he went to leave she had woken up and told him to be safe on his journey home before she fell back asleep.

He shakes his head and puts his helmet on, getting on his motorcycle and making his way to the Tower.  He doesn't bother going as fast as possible as he knows that there'll be traffic despite it being only six in the morning.

He rolls around the thought of dating Aurelia in his head.  He likes her, he knows that.  He likes the fact that she's not afraid of him even more.  However, he's still broken.  He still wakes up in the middle of the night sometimes, screaming out as his past haunts him.  He still disconnects from reality sometimes, but luckily the soldier doesn't come out.  He doesn't have to worry about  _him_  ruining things for him.

So why is he so hesitant?  It's obvious that she likes him, too.  It's so plainly clear with the way she flirted with him during dinner and the fact that most of her attention was focused on him.  Not to mention the fact that it was  _him_  she called when she was getting attacked, not Steve or Sam.

 _So why the hell is he afraid?_   He doesn't know.  He blinks a few times as the Tower comes into view, realizing that he's been on auto-pilot for the past forty or so minutes.  The private garage opens for him and he knows it's Jarvis' doing.  It's been two years since being brought to the Tower and he's still uncomfortable with the fact that someone is monitoring him all the time.  Even if it  _is_  an AI-he has to remind himself.

He shakes his head and grabs his helmet out of sheer instinct even though he knows that there's a very  _very_  low chance of it getting stolen.  It's just habit.  He makes his way through the Tower and up to his apartment.  It sits on the same floor as Sam's and Steve's and he mentally curses as he  _knows_  that they'll be cooking in the communal kitchen as they always do.

 _Maybe if I'm quiet enough and take the back hallway..._  he starts to think, freezing as someone behind him speaks.  "He's alive!" Sam says loudly, easily drawing the attention from what he and Steve are cooking to him.  "How was your date?  And spending the night?  Naughty boy."   _Or maybe not,_  he finishes the thought.

His shoulders slump and he turns towards the dark-skinned man, sending him a glare.  "Leave me alone, Sam," he mutters, walking over to the couch and putting his helmet on the coffee table. He'll put it in his room after breakfast.  "I don't bother you when you spend the night at a gal's place."

"Oh, so you went  _back_  to her apartment?" the man teases, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.  He glares at him and grabs a mug and pours himself some coffee.  He pours a little bit of milk in it and  _maybe_  a little too much sugar in it, but he doesn't care.

"We didn't have to go back," he defends himself.  "We decided to order in and watch some movies.   _And no Sam_  we did not 'Netflix and Chill', we watched  _Disney_  movies.   _Disney movies Sam._   You know, the kind for kids?"  He continues scowling at the man who's still looking at him suggestively.  "Anyways," he says, rolling his eyes.  "I know better than to bed a dame after the first date."

"So it  _was_  a date," Steve jumps in, raising an eyebrow as he moves some pancakes to one of the larger plates.  Bucky snorts.   _Why do you gotta be so domestic, Rogers?_   "Did you have fun?"  Bucky's lips tilt up in amusement at his friend.   _Definitely still the same Stevie,_  he thinks in a mutter.

" _Yes mom_ ," he says sarcastically, rolling his eyes and helping with the bacon.  "We 'had fun'."  He pauses for a moment, thinking about what happened at the end of the first movie.   _Mulan, was it?_   "For the most part..."  The last part is in a mutter and he should have known better than to say something like that in the presence of the mother hen.

Steve sets down his spatula and turns to him with a frown, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back on the counter.  "What do you mean 'for the most part'?" he asks, gaining the attention of Sam.  "What happened, Bucky?"  He breathes through his nose heavily.

"There was a little...  _incident_  with one of the movies," he says, flipping over some of the bacon and adding some more.  He knows he should probably just tell Steve what happened straight out, but he  _knows_  he's going to worry.   _That's what he does_ -he reminds himself with a sigh.

"Bucky..." Steve warns, causing him to tense up and turn the stove off.   _This might be a longer conversation than I originally thought and I don't feel like burning some bacon._   He sighs.   _Fine._

"You know that one movie that you guys watched a few weeks ago?  Mulan?" he asks, getting a nod from Steve and Sam.  "Well...  You know the ending scene on the roof of the palace...?"  The two of them squint their eyes in concentration, clearly having to think about what part he's alluding to before both of their eyes widen.

"Oh, shit, Buck," Steve says, making him raise an eyebrow at his use of a curse word.  He knows that his friend still doesn't like cussing of any kind.  "Are you okay?  Did you get a flashback?"   _He should get a 'Mother Hen of the Year' Award._

" _I_  was perfectly fine," he stresses, gesturing to himself.  " _Relia_  however, forgot about the firework part and she apparently hasn't seen the movie since  _before_  blowing her leg off.  It's safe to say that I spent nearly an hour calming her down from a panic attack and a flashback."

The two men look sympathetic at that and he turns around, turning the stove back on to finish cooking the bacon.  "Is she okay, man?" Sam asks after a few moments, helping him plate some of the bacon.  "If you want, I can call her?  See if she wants to come into the VA and talk about it?  How'd you manage to calm her down?"The concern is clear in his tone and he's amused to find out that the man's already worried about the girl despite knowing her for a little over a day.

"I'll text her about it," he says.  "I told her to text me when she wakes up."  He brushes off Sam's raised eyebrow.  "I couldn't really do much other than hold her and tell her that it's okay and that she's safe throughout the flashback.  The thing lasted over ten minutes.  After that, I managed to get her to focus on my heartbeat because she couldn't even her breaths with that breathing technique you taught me a while ago.  I think the cold from my hand," he raises it and wiggles his fingers, "helped ground her.  I ended up having to take my shirt off so she could feel my heart and she rested her head on my shoulder."  He shrugs the shoulder, remembering the feeling of her clammy skin on it.

Sam claps him on the shoulder.  "Smart thinking with the heartbeat.  Not all people know how to match their breaths and it could have easily turned into her passing out from oxygen deprivation.  Are you sure she's okay, though?"  Bucky's lip twitches in a smile.

"Yeah," he says, tossing the skillet into the sink to clean later.  "We finished our movie and pizza and then we watched two more movies before falling asleep on her couch."  He rolls his shoulders.  "She needs a better couch."  Sam snorts a laugh as they all move the food to the dining table.

They eat in silence for about five minutes before Steve starts up.  "So... You had a date?"  He sighs and rolls his eyes.

" _Yes, Steve_ ," he says, rolling his eyes.  "I had a date."  He pushes down the warmth in his ears knowing that he'll be mercilessly teased by Sam no matter what if he saw it.  Steve smiles warmly at him.

"That's good," he comments.  They eat in silence for another few minutes, and then, "So, all you did was  _watch movies._   In her  _apartment._   On her  _couch?_ "  He grins shamelessly.  "And  _Disney_ movies?   _Nothing_  else?"

"Is that so hard to believe, Rogers?" he chirps, drinking the rest of his coffee and standing from the table, picking up his plate to clean.  He doesn't need to look back at Steve to know that he has a dry look plastered on his face.

"Yes, actually," Steve says, standing up as well.  " _Bucky Barnes_  does  _not_  just leave a dame without some form of a kiss.  And despite everything that's happened, you are  _still_  that Bucky Barnes."  He huffs and rolls his eyes.  He'd say that he's a different person now, and while he somewhat is, he's still mostly the same Bucky from the forties.

"She's not like those gals from back then, Stevie," he says, washing off his plate.  "This dame.  This  _girl._   She's different.  She's not just a way to have fun like those other girls were.  I don't want to ruin this."  He thinks for a few moments.

"And why're encouraging me to kiss her after barely knowing her?" he asks, raising an eyebrow as he dries his plate and silverware.  "I remember that  _you_  were the one tellin' me to  _not_  kiss dames after the first date.  What's changed?"  Steve raises an eyebrow and he waves his hand around.  " _Other_  than the last seventy years."

"I don't know," he finally says, cleaning his plate.  "I just find it odd, I don't know?  I know we've both changed a lot since back then, but you still remind me of that man that would go out dancin' with a girl on each arm.  Of the man who'd have any dame he wanted."  He tilts his head to the side and thinks it over.

"I'm not really that man, anymore," he says, leaning on the counter.   He realizes that Sam's left, probably to give them some privacy.  "I know I'm still him, but some things have changed.  I don't really trust people like that anymore.  I don't feel like I'd be that open anymore."  Steve nods his head and sighs.

"I know, Buck," he says.  "Just, try not to be too blocked off around her, okay?  I know we barely know the girl but I know you're sweet on her.  And I know she's sweet on you, too."  Bucky grins at that.  It's nice to know that he's not the only one to realize it.

"I don't think you'll have to worry about that, punk," he says, punching him lightly in the shoulder.  Steve grins back at him and claps him on his shoulder.

"Jerk."


	9. Chapter 9

She looks down at the box in confusion and then over to the faces surrounding her.  It's been three months since she's first met the Avengers and it's safe to say that all of them are now friends.  They all have yet to play another match of paintball with everyone involved, but she doesn't mind.

Bucky's been playing with her more often than not and they've become kind of an icon with their black clothing, rifles, masks, and silver prosthetics.  People tend to call them the  _Winter Shadows_ , mashing together both of their nicknames.  She's come to like the name.

"What's this?" she asks, poking the box with a frown.  The box itself is covered with red wrapping paper and a golden bow, no doubt Tony's doing.  It's a little over two and a half feet long and about a foot in width, though it's only about half a foot tall.

Two arms wrap around her from behind as a chin rests on her shoulder.  She looks at Bucky's face, confused, and he plants a kiss on her lips.  She smiles into it but still looks at him for an explanation.  "Happy birthday, doll," he murmurs into her hair.

Her eyes widen at the realization, though it's not her birthday yet.  It's in three days and she'll be driving out to her mom's with Bucky, who has yet to properly meet him.  She's nervous about it as her brothers will be there, too.  She smiles at them all, a blush rising on her cheeks as Bucky pulls away from her.  "You guys didn't have too..." she starts, but she stops when she sees all of their dry expressions and she grins sheepishly.  "Thank you."

They all continue to stare at her and Tony rolls his eyes.  "Well?" he asks, gesturing to the box.  "It took me over two months to build.  Are you gonna open it?"  She narrows her eyes at him suspiciously and picks up the box, blinking in confusion at the weight of it.   _Probably doesn't weigh more than fifteen pounds..._  she notes.

With another glance at them, she picks at the wrapping paper, glaring at Sam who snickers at her method.  She doesn't like ripping the paper, for whatever reason, and it's safe to say that some people find that a little odd.  "If you don't like my method, Wilson, then you can open it for me."  He shakes his head, still chuckling, and she opens it quicker.

Her eyebrows furrow at the wooden box.  It's dark in color with black accents.  She glances over at Bucky, who has a suspiciously excited and nervous look on his face, and she clicks open the little tab.  Her hands raise to cover her mouth as she lifts the lid and her wide eyes meet Tony's.

"Is this...?" she whispers, running her fingers over the cold metal.  Tony also looks somewhat nervous, but it's covered in pride.  He nods his head with a grin as she lets out a shuddering breath.

In the box lays a prosthetic that can cover the entirety of her left leg.  It looks very similar to Bucky's arm but in a more feminine style.  There are fewer metal plates and the color is a little darker.  She tilts her head to the side in curiosity as she picks up a little box with node looking things.  She glances over to Tony who explains.

"Those connect to your brain.  They are placed right here," he says, pointing to the area behind the top part of her ear.  "They'll allow it so you can move the prosthetic like an actual leg.  You'll be able to tell how much force you're using and you can feel pressure, but I have yet to master complete sensing capabilities.  You can also use the leg like any other prosthetic, but you won't be able to move it without the nodes."  She swallows thickly and nods her head, barely touching the prosthetic.

"Why don't you try it out?" Steve suggests, making her breath hitch in her throat.  She bites her lip and looks over at Bucky.  After looking into his eyes for a few moments, she nods her head.

"Can you show where these go?" she asks Tony, holding up the little case with the nodes.  He walks up to her and moves her curls out of the way, taking one of the nodes and attaching it to her head.  She winces as the skin there pinches and Tony gives a sheepish smile.

"I forgot to mention that it'll attach to your skin."  She gives him a dry look before moving her head to allow him to attach the other one.  She rolls up her pant leg, happy that she decided to wear loose sweatpants, and pulls off her prosthetic, sighing in relief as the skin there stops itching.  She ignores the insecurity that rises in her as everyone looks at her stump in curiosity as she's never taken off her prosthetic in front of any of them before.

"Oh!" Tony says, startling her.  "The plates on the upper thigh and around your knee will also allow for your skin to breath and I have the comfiest material on the inside of the leg."  She hums as she feels the material, nodding in agreement.

She gestures for Bucky to help her up and she braces her weight on him as she takes the prosthetic out of the box and lifts her partial leg up and slides it into the socket.  She blinks in shock at the feeling of it.   _It's a perfect fit._   She looks at Tony with a raised eyebrow and he grins.

"I had Jarvis run a scan of your legs when you came here three months ago to get patched up," Tony says shamelessly.  She nods her head and begins to put some of her weight on the leg.  "If you want to activate the 'moves like a real-leg' part of it, just press the small buttons on your nodes at the same exact time."

She bites her lip and nods her head, pressing both buttons.  She blinks at the odd feeling and shakes her head, looking down at her leg.  She can feel the weight of the leg differently than she did just a few seconds ago.  It feels just like her regular leg.  She hesitates to put weight on her leg and she looks up at Bucky who gives her an encouraging nod.  She sucks in a deep breath and puts weight on her leg.

With a nod to Bucky, he steps away and she bounces on her leg experimentally.  She covers her face immediately as tears spring in her eyes and a shuddering breath leaves her.  "Oh my, God," she says in a gasp as she looks at Bucky.  He gestures for her to walk towards him and she barely hesitates to do so.

" _Oh my, God_ ," she says again as she steps without a limp.  She hugs him and buries her head into his shirt, trying to stop herself from sobbing.  It doesn't exactly feel like her normal leg, as she can't exactly feel the wood beneath her feet or the fabric of her sweatpants on her leg, but she can walk normally.  She can roll her ankle, wiggle her synthetic toes, twist her leg around without it catching, and it's all very overwhelming.

Bucky hugs her and rests his cheek on her head as she sniffles into his chest.  She pulls away and wipes at her eyes, spinning around and launching herself at Tony.  He reluctantly wraps his arms around her as he's forced to take a step back.  She hadn't expected the strength of her leg.  "Thank you, Tony," she says, letting go of him.  " _Thank you._ "

He grins at her as she bounces on her leg, which would have looked and felt weird otherwise as her foot wouldn't have been able to act like this one.  "Go ahead," he says, gesturing towards her leg.  "Give us a little twirl."

Bucky grabs her hand and lifts it above her head.  She spins around on the new leg, her normal one lifted in the air, and she giggles, a smile forming on her lips.  She stops spinning and she's happy that her foot didn't catch on the wood as her silicon toes would have.  She wobbles a little on the leg but catches herself easily.

"I take it you like it?" Bruce says.  She nods her head with a wide smile, knowing that he must have helped, too.  "I did the inner wiring to make sure you can feel various parts of your leg.  Move your toes."  She looks down at her foot and wiggles her toes with little effort, feeling the way the metal rubs against each other.  She doesn't really have to think about it, but it's weird knowing that the toes aren't exactly connected to her foot.

"Thank you, Bruce," she says softly, moving forward to give him a hug.  He rubs her back before she pulls away.  She chuckles and rubs her watery eyes.  "This feels so surreal.  Thank you all so much."

Bucky wraps his arms around her again and she leans back into him, looking up.  He leans his face down and presses his lips to her forehead.  "I'm going to give you your present later, okay, doll?"  She smiles up at him as her face flushes.  She doesn't bother telling him not to get her a present as she had given him a present on his birthday despite him telling her not to.

"Hey, lovebirds!" Wilson calls out, making her mock scowl at him.  It evens out in a blush as she sees him holding a present, along with Clint, and Steve.  Natasha's holding a cake with twenty-six candles on it.  "Happy birthday, Aurelia."

The team proceeds to sing 'Happy Birthday' off-key and she has a horrible feeling that this is what's going to happen every single year after this.  Natasha holds the cake in front of her and she looks over to Bucky.

"Make a wish, doll," he murmurs into her hair.  She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes, thinking of a wish.  A smile forms on her lips as she thinks of it.   _I wish that I can never leave the team._   She blows out the candles as everyone cheers.

She ends up sat on the couch with three other presents sat in front of her.  A sketchbook and some pencils from Steve because she told him that she liked to draw, a new phone from Sam (a _Stark_  phone, shockingly), and a fifty dollar gift card to her favorite store from Clint.

"Thank you, everyone," she says, smiling up at them.  "You didn't have to do this."

"Hold on," Natasha says.  "We're not finished yet."  She furrows her eyebrows in confusion as the redhead pulls out a red envelope.  She looks at everyone with suspicion as they all suddenly look nervous.

She tilts her head at it as she takes the envelope and flips it around.  It says nothing on the front so she turns it to the front and peels off the wax stamping.  In it is a single piece of paper that looks like a note card.  Her head shoots up as she reads the first words, her eyes widening as her mouth drops open.

"You don't have to join if you don't want to," Steve says, gesturing towards the card.  "But we've all seen what you can do and we'd love for you to join us and become an official member of the team."

She looks down at the card again.  It has two words on it.  Two very intimidating, life-changing words:

_Avengers Initiative_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the final part of this short story. I hope you enjoyed it.


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